Telecommunications systems, cable televisions systems, and data communication networks use communication networks to rapidly convey large amounts of information between remote points. A communication network may include network elements that route packets through the network. Some network elements may include a distributed architecture, wherein packet processing may be distributed among several subsystems of the network element (e.g., line cards).
Internet Group Management Protocol (IGMP) is a communications protocol used by hosts and adjacent routers on Internet Protocol (IP) networks to establish multicast group memberships. However, IGMP is a highly computational protocol. For example, using traditional approaches, IGMP may require: a very large number of timers in order to maintain protocol state, generation of IGMP Group query for every multicast group, generation of IGMP General query for every Virtual Local Area Network (VLAN)/Level 2 Bridging Domain, processing of responses from active receivers, processing of IGMP Leave messages, and periodic aging out of groups with no receivers. For a systems with large numbers of multicast groups, the processing required by the IGMP protocol can easily overwhelm a system processor.